Bears are expected to be in the hunt for a running back. Here are 10 potential middle-round draft options.

The Bears didn’t sign Kareem Hunt, and it’s possible they didn’t even try. But finding a running back is expected to be a top priority in their offseason plan.

With the league’s No. 1 scoring defense set to return almost intact — only strong safety Adrian Amos and nickel cornerback Bryce Callahan are free agents — the Bears will focus on making an offense that made a major jump in 2018 more explosive in coach Matt Nagy’s second season.

That means the Bears are likely to seek a successor to Jordan Howard, who remains under contract for one more season. There were rumors last spring they were considering trading Howard, who was coming off his second 1,000-yard season, and there was likely a solid basis for that chatter. But he wasn’t a strong trade chip, and whatever value he held then has diminished. He would be a one-year rental and is coming off a poor season.

That puts general manager Ryan Pace and Nagy in a position in which they need to find a good fit with a mid- or late-round pick as the Bears’ first selection won’t come until the third round, 88th overall. They have proved adept at identifying impact players in the middle of the draft, and according to four scouts polled for this story, this year’s running back class looks to have a little more depth, although there isn’t a blue-chip prospect like Saquon Barkley in 2018.

Howard finished with 935 rushing yards after improving in December, carrying 88 times for 399 yards and four touchdowns in the final five games. None of those opponents finished in the top 13 against the run, and Howard’s 3.7-yard average ranked 39th among qualifying backs. He looked slow throughout the season and wasn’t as powerful, struggling to run through contact. The Bears faced eight-man fronts on only 14 percent of Howard’s carries, but he had problems making unblocked defenders miss.

Measurables aren’t the best indicators of production, especially the 40-yard dash. Howard ran it in 4.59 seconds at his pro day in 2016, while Hunt was timed at 4.62 at the next year’s scouting combine. They look nothing alike on the field as Hunt possesses much greater ability to make defenders miss. Howard is a nice zone runner and can make a cut and get up the field, but he’s not running through contact with success like he did as a rookie and he doesn’t shake defenders. That ability makes Hunt special, and there’s a considerable difference in their ability in the passing game.

Nagy won’t want to field weekly questions about the running game for another season, so the Bears surely will address the position a year after they had many more roster holes to fill. They need a back who can handle 15 touches per game and make a defender miss, someone with the ability to play on third down at times.

Hunt was a third-round pick by the Chiefs in 2017, when he emerged as the NFL’s leading rusher. There were character concerns, not related to violence, that probably drove his stock down a little. The Bears won’t have to deal with the public-relations circus the Browns must navigate after signing Hunt to a one-year contract Monday, and they can get a rookie who will be under contract for four seasons.

“You’re not going to get that kind of skill set often in the middle of the draft,” one national scout said. “You’re going to get one or the other, not a guy that does it all. That’s a complete back, and you’re going to have a hard time getting that in the third or fourth round. But sometimes guys slip through the cracks or there are issues with guys.”

“I don’t think it’s great, but there are enough in this draft,” another scout said of the running back class. “There weren’t many last year after the guys at the top. You have to look at the style of backs they are going to want, more of a versatile back. Even though Tarik Cohen is versatile in a sense, he is more of a pass-game guy. They’re still going to want to focus on that guy who can split out and run routes and catch the ball well. There are a few of those guys out there.

“If you are taking a third-round or a fourth-round guy, it’s not going to be an elite player necessarily but someone who has a complete skill set. Jordan doesn’t have that. He can’t run routes. He can’t catch. So they don’t have to be elite; they have to be complete.”

Waiting until the third round or later means the Bears might not be able to check every box they would like for a running back. That doesn’t mean they can’t find a good one. Hunt, Alvin Kamara, James Conner, David Johnson and Devonta Freeman were selected in Rounds 3 or 4 over the last five years. They check most of the boxes now.

It’s difficult to project a lot of the prospects as pass catchers because most of the college spread offenses don’t throw to the running back very often, but you can see if a player looks natural running routes and catching the ball. On-field workouts for running backs at the combine take place March 1.

Here is a list of 10 the scouts identified as possible fits for the Bears (in alphabetical order with size listed by their schools):

Rodney Anderson, Oklahoma, 6-foot-1, 220 pounds

Sue Ogrocki / AP

Oklahoma running back Rodney Anderson during the second quarter of a game against West Virginia on Nov. 25, 2017.

Oklahoma running back Rodney Anderson during the second quarter of a game against West Virginia on Nov. 25, 2017. (Sue Ogrocki / AP)

Medical information will be huge for teams interested in Anderson, who suffered three season-ending injuries with the Sooners — a knee injury in the second game against UCLA last fall, a neck injury in the 2016 preseason and a broken leg in his second game in 2015. He was dynamic in 2017, when he rushed for 1,161 yards (6.2 per carry) and 13 touchdowns and caught 17 passes for 281 yards (16.5 average) with five touchdowns. He ran for 201 yards in a 54-48 loss to Georgia in the Rose Bowl. Injury concerns could knock Anderson clear off draft boards, or he could be an interesting prospect with proven ability to make defenders miss.

Darrell Henderson, Memphis, 5-9, 200

Mark Humphrey / AP

Memphis running back Darrell Henderson runs against UCLA in a 2017 game.

He looks shot out of a cannon running the ball and he led the nation with 8.92 yards per carry. His 15 rushes of 40 or more yards also led the nation, and he has said his goal is to run the 40 in 4.4 seconds or faster in Indianapolis. “He doesn’t have a ton of wiggle, more of an angular runner, but he can flat-out go,” a scout said. “Not a super-big back but a thicker frame. I don’t know if he has the size to take a massive pounding in the NFL, but you can’t deny his production. He ran some routes.”

A likely Day 3 pick, Homer doesn’t have any outstanding traits but he does everything fairly well, and that’s a reason the Bears should consider him. He ran for 985 yards last season and caught 19 passes for 186 yards, and he’s elusive in the open field.

Stanford running back Bryce Love runs for a touchdown past Arizona State defensive back Demonte King during the third quarter of a game on Sept. 30, 2017.

Stanford running back Bryce Love runs for a touchdown past Arizona State defensive back Demonte King during the third quarter of a game on Sept. 30, 2017. (Marcio Jose Sanchez / AP)

Love is rehabilitating from a torn ACL suffered at the end of the season, and that will hurt his draft stock. He had a huge 2017 season with 2,118 yards but was a disappointment last fall, and there will be durability concerns. He runs with great vision and balance. It’s somewhat concerning he wasn’t more productive in the passing game in an offense that produced Christian McCaffrey.

David Montgomery, Iowa State, 5-11, 219

Charlie Neibergall / AP

Iowa State running back David Montgomery runs through the West Virginia defense during a 2018 game.

Iowa State running back David Montgomery runs through the West Virginia defense during a 2018 game. (Charlie Neibergall / AP)

There’s a chance Montgomery won’t be available by the time the Bears pick. “This kid could be this year’s Kareem Hunt,” a scout said. “He’s not going to test well. He’s not a burner by any means. He gets run down. He doesn’t have top-end speed. But he’s got good short-area quickness, short-area burst, great change of direction, exceptional balance and he’s 215 or whatever. Not a lot of pass-game production, but he looks comfortable catching the ball. It doesn’t look like he’s fighting it. He doesn’t look out of place and he’s really strong on contact. He bounces off of tackles. He’s got that NFL running style. I would be really surprised if he is there at the end of Round 3.” Montgomery rushed for 2,362 yards over the last two seasons.

A super-productive three-year player at FAU, Singletary closed out his career with 1,348 yards and 22 touchdowns in 2018. “He is electric and he’s got some LeSean McCoy to his game in terms of his ability to make defenders miss, to slip tackles in the open field,” a scout said. “Here’s another guy that doesn’t have a big body, smaller frame. I bet he tests well.” Singletary caught only six passes last season, so teams will want to see him running routes and catching the ball.

Benny Snell, Kentucky, 5-11, 223

John Raoux / AP

Kentucky running back Benny Snell Jr. runs a 12-yard touchdown against Penn State during the Citrus Bowl on Jan. 1, 2019.

Snell needs to prove he can run routes because while he caught 17 passes last season, they covered only 105 yards, meaning he was pretty much only a check-down target. Snell ran for 1,449 yards last season and finished his three-year career with 3,873 yards (5.3 per carry) and 48 touchdowns. “Bigger back, real downhill guy with size,” a scout said. “More of a straight-line guy, but he’s got some wiggle and he’s extremely powerful at the point of attack. He doesn’t look natural catching the football.”

He runs with good balance but lacks high-end speed. Probably a Day 3 pick. He caught 54 passes in three seasons for the Buckeyes. “He’s complete but isn’t really special,” a scout said. “Kind of good at everything, but he’s not elite. He’s not a pounder. He’s not small. Sort of right in between. He can play first and second down and then you bring in someone like Cohen and you’re fine. He’s not bad.”

Notre Dame running back Dexter Williams breaks a tackle on his way to a 58-yard touchdown run against Florida State on Nov. 10, 2018.

Notre Dame running back Dexter Williams breaks a tackle on his way to a 58-yard touchdown run against Florida State on Nov. 10, 2018. (Joe Robbins / Getty)

He helped himself with a good week of practice at the Senior Bowl after leading the Irish with 995 yards and 12 touchdowns in the fall despite sitting out the first four games because of a reported suspension. The Bears could get an insider scouting report from offensive line coach Harry Hiestand. “High-cut runner,” a scout said. “Good zone guy. Runs with good vision, but he wants to bounce the ball outside a little too much.” Williams is another likely Day 3 pick who does a little bit of everything.

James Williams, Washington State, 5-11, 195

David Zalubowski / AP

Washington State's James Williams during a game on Nov. 10, 2018.

Washington State's James Williams during a game on Nov. 10, 2018. (David Zalubowski / AP)

Another late-round prospect, Williams was super-productive as a pass catcher in Mike Leach’s Air Raid offense. He caught 83 passes last season while rushing for 560 yards and 12 touchdowns. He might not be effective enough as a runner to fit what the Bears are seeking. “Upright runner, not a huge frame, but slips off tackles pretty well,” a scout said. “Not great change of direction, but he is a great receiver out of the backfield. He’s different than Cohen because of his frame and how they run.”